The People Behind KUKUI

Behind every successful shop, are other companies and products aiding the success. The right partnership can push a business to further growth and profit. But what constitutes a good partnership?

For Christa Browne, who owns Dave's Automotive with Scott Browne in Stockertown, Pa., it’s about strong relationships and strong products. 

Over the years, Browne has found those two very things in her close partnership with the staff at KUKUI, specifically her client success coordinator. This connection and the subsequent knowledge gained has helped propel Dave’s Automotive to larger growth. 

Browne sat down with Ratchet+Wrench to discuss her relationship with the people behind KUKUI, and how it’s helped move her marketing forward.

When did you start using the KUKUI platform?

We made the switch around 2013, so we’ve been with them for around seven years. In that time we’ve really grown together. 

Prior to KUKUI , we were using several different companies and outside resources, so being able to utilize one platform for everything is what drew me in. We were looking at our customer retention through one outsourced company, and I developed our website myself before we outsourced that to a different company. It made sense to have someone managing the website, integrated with customer retention marketing, as well as analytics.

What has your experience been working with a KUKUI client success coordinator?

Our current client success coordinator is named Rhonda, and we’ve worked with her for over five years now⁠—her and I have had a very long standing relationship. I don’t think that without her dedication to her job, we would have the same outcomes that we’ve had. She’s very good at keeping me on task. We talk every three weeks, and in between we email back and forth. If I ever need anything from her, I can always call.

What does a typical call with your client success coordinator look like?

On a normal call, after we catch up, we delve into the analytics. Usually we go right to the KUKUI dashboard. If there are any metrics that look off, she’ll ask about any recent shop or staff changes that may have impacted the numbers. We’ll also look at any increases that have happened to discover what may have been the cause. Then we go into my Google AdWords campaign. Rhonda is really good at analyzing year-to-year statistics. 

Looking at my dashboard and going over analytics gives me a really good gauge of where the shop is at. We usually finish the call by discussing what’s next, maybe a postcard or email campaign. 

Has working with KUKUI improved your shop’s overall marketing? 

The analytics and call tracking are huge, those things bring so much value in what they provide. It really does help me decide where to spend my marketing dollars. Our budget is still in a growth stage so I spend quite a few dollars a month on marketing. With the high amount of marketing that we are doing, I want to be able to see as much of that result as I can⁠—KUKUI absolutely provides that. I think if you are dedicated to learning from the Kukui client success coordinators, and you listen to their recommendations, you will grow. Like anything else, you have to want it. 

Do I think I’d be where I am at today without the support of someone like Rhonda and KUKUI? I don’t think I would. She has taught us how to look at the lead to customer conversion rate, as well as what customers are looking for, and when. These are not things you just pick up on your own. 

What is your favorite part about working with the KUKUI team?

KUKUI truly makes you feel like you are a part of their family⁠—it sounds weird, but it’s true. If I have an issue, it’s always attended to immediately. As fast as their team can reasonably get something taken care of, they’re going to take care of it. They are very good at making me feel taken care of, and because of that, I’ve never thought about going to anybody else.